Wayne County Life

Peter McKay at Lyons Boat Dock

Submitted by:  Robert Stopper, Lyons


Peter Mckay first visited Lyons, NY on September 16, 2010. It was day number 16 of his kayak expedition thru the Erie Canal. On Friday July 20, 2012, Peter returned to Lyons. It was day number 50 of his bike ride from Anachortes, Washington to Bar Harbor, Maine, approximately 4300 miles!

Peter is following the Northern Tier Bike Route, one of many adventure routes planned by the Adventure Cycling Association. Peter hopes to complete his journey in 8 weeks. Said Peter, “When I hit those darn brutal head winds in North Dakota, I could hardly move, and I began to wonder if I maybe was going crazy.

I usually bike about 6o miles a day, and in those winds, I simply could not move…. But then there were a couple of days when I did over 100 miles each day, and that was great”!

Peter sleeps “wherever” and frequently takes advantage of the organization Warm Showers.

Peter has kayaked, canoed, and biked in many areas of the world, but he thinks that perhaps his most memorable bike tour thus far was a five week cycle expedition of the “Pilgrim Route” through France and Spain.

Bike wheel generator provides power for cell phone and other electronics

When Peter is moving down the trail or road, his German- made dynamo generator, mounted on the hub of the front wheel, charges his cell phone and all those other “tacky” electrical gadgets.

Peter’s background is in Agrarian Economics. He loves trails and blue highways and the people who reside along those wonderful paths of civilization. According to Peter, “Everyone in life has a story to tell– the more stories we hear and share, the more everyone’s life becomes richer and more meaningful.”

He is fascinated with the story of the Erie Canalway and plans to return to New York State next summer and join “those hundreds of bikers” as they cycle from Buffalo to Albany! McKay, aged 61 years young, resides in Juneau, Alaska during the “off” season.

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